Andretti Autosport: Milwaukee IndyFest – Drivers’ Post-Race Quotes

Ryan Hunter-Reay, No. 1 DHL Chevrolet

Defending series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay claimed his second consecutive Milwaukee IndyFest title today. The America started fourth and took the twin checkers to capture his 11th career victory. Hunter-Reay moves to second in the IZOD IndyCar Series championship points standings.

“The other guys had such a great car, Helio (Castroneves) and Taku(ma Sato). I thought we might have not had a good enough car to win it, and we just pushed through in the end. I just can’t say enough about these guys on this No. 1 DHL car – they did such a great job on these pits, as they always do, getting me out in front of traffic and in front of the other guys, just an excellent job. I’m so proud of this race team. We had the balance we needed. Thank you to all the fans for coming out today and making this another Milwaukee Mile race that’s very special – I appreciate it.”

On how special it is to have his son here for his first Father’s Day:

“It’s the best. Those last two laps I was thinking, ‘Man, I got to do this for him.’ So, here it is, and it’s so special having this six-month-old at my side in Victory Lane on Father’s Day (weekend).”

E.J. Viso, No. 5 Team Venezuela PDVSA CITGO Chevrolet

Making his sixth consecutive top-five start of the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series season, E.J. Viso followed up with 10 laps led and his career best finish at the historic Milwaukee Mile in fourth. The Venezuelan moves up one position in the championship points standings to 12th.

“It was my best finish here, and a top four is pretty impressive. We know we’ve had the speed because we’ve seen it at almost every event this year, but I think we hadn’t quite been able to close the deal. We have been struggling a bit thus far, and I think we’re due for some podiums and wins. Hopefully this is just the start. It’s a good result for the whole crew and the whole team – I’m just looking forward to the next race. I hope we can keep building this momentum and that more strong results are ahead. I’m happy for Ryan (Hunter-Reay) – he did a good job. I like Milwaukee, I like Iowa and the short ovals. These places are fun; they’re basically super fast corners on a road course. It’s a nice combination of factors, and we have a good package… We’ve qualified in the top five for six races in a row. We’re very close, we’ll keep fighting, and we’ll look forward to Iowa.”

James Hinchcliffe, No. 27 GoDaddy Chevrolet

Rolling off the grid in second for the 250-lap Milwaukee IndyFest, GoDaddy driver James Hinchcliffe marked his fourth top-10 finish of the season with a fifth-place tally. The Toronto native remains ninth in the championship points fight.

“Any time you get a top five in a series so competitive, it’s a good day. To have three of our cars in the top five is incredible; the team’s done a great job. I’m just a little upset we weren’t a tiny bit better in traffic today in the No. 27 GoDaddy Chevy, because I think that would have helped us get around the lapped cars and we could have challenged the guys we were actually racing for position with.

“This track is the ultimate test of patience. It’s so easy to over-do it and get in the marbles and end up in the wall – and I had a couple close calls for sure – but you’ve got to be aggressive. You also have to have respect to this place… it was a lot of fun out there either way. We always love coming here – I think it’s one of the best race tracks in the country. Hopefully we put on a good show for the fans. So, I want to wish a Happy Father’s Day to everyone. We wish the GoDaddy car was a little bit higher, but really happy for Ryan (Hunter-Reay), and having three Andretti Autosport cars in the top five is incredible.”

Marco Andretti, No. 25 RC Cola Chevrolet

Starting on the pole position — the third-generation racer’s third career pole award and second at the Milwaukee Mile — Marco Andretti led for 61 laps early in the race before suffering an electrical issues sending the No. 25 car to the garages for repair. He later rejoined the field and recorded a 20th-place finish. Andretti will now sit third in the championship points standings.